Method of laying carpets



NOV. 7, 1950 ",1: VAN BELLE 2,529,463

METHOD OF LAYING CARPETS Filed March 10, 1947 IJLIIIJLI lllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll INVENT l'hamasfiVanBe/ BYQ Partented Nov. 7, 19 50 METHOD OF LAYING .CARPETSJ Thomas B. Van Belle,- l minates-gi 7 Application Marchlo, 1947, SerialN o. 733,563

The object of the invention is, to provide improvements in the method of laying floor coverings broadly, but more specifically in the laying of carpets, and in the resulting product or, combination of floor covering with the floor upon which it is laid.

Another object is to provide a method of this character, by which thecarpet is laid evenly, smoothly and with an equal degree of; tension or stretch throughout its width and length, substantially regardless of the number of fastening means that may be employed, and it is to be understood that all references herein to carpets are to be construed as relating to other types of floor coverings as well, except where characteristics peculiar to carpets are concerned, as for instance When referring to the pile of the carpet and the like.

A further object is to provide improvements of this class, wherein after the laying is completed no nail, tack, or brad heads are visible upon the surface of the carpet, nor is there any resulting depression such as usually results from the head of the fastening means compressing and holding down the fibrous or other carpet material adjacent to said means.

Still another object is to provide a method by which the cost of laying carpets by this improved manner and result involves no more than but slightly increased cost over the customary methods long in use, and which in every way results in a substantially better finish than heretofore accomplished without considerable added expense.

With the objects thus briefly stated, the invention comprises further details of operation and resulting structure, which are herein fully brought out in the following description, when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which Fig. l is a vertical sectional view of a wooden or similar type of flooring upon which is laid a pile carpet in accordance with the improved method; Fig. 2 is a slightly modified section showing the same method as applied to a concrete, cement or similar type of flooring; and Fig. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary section of a portion of the structure shown in Fig. 1.

Referring to Figs. 1 and 3 of the drawings, a wooden floor I is shown as representing any type of floor into which nails can be driven, as distinguished from cement and similar types of flooring hereinafter referred to, the supports of this flooring not being shown, as they do not enter into the invention. From said floor rises a wall 2 against which is secured any desired type of surbase or baseboard 3, topped by the usual cap moulding 4.

Upon the floor I is laid a relatively thick sheet of lining 5, of any desired type, such as the hair or jute lining that has attained wide and satisfactory usage, the outer edge 6 of said lining 2Claims. (oi s-16 stopping short of the surbase 3, to provide a space that is preferably about one and one-quarter inches wide; A pile carpet is shown as comprising a woven base 'l from which the usual pile fibers 8 extend upwardly. The free edge portion I of the carpet is secured by meansof bill posters or similar tacks}! to a strip of Wood or the like Ill initially in upright position and preferably about one inch in width after which this mar ginal portion of the'carpet is inverted and turned under, so that the strip of wood with the carpet surrounding its initially inner and now its outer edge is laid in the recess provided between the edge of the lining and the baseboard, hereinbefore described.

Now in the position shown in the drawings, the reinforced and transversely stiffened edge portion of the carpet is secured to the flooring by driving so-called headless steel nails or brads I I through the upper exposed surface of the carpet, the wooden strip, the under-turned edge portion of the carpet, and finally into the flooring itself, as shown. As a matter of fact, the headless nails or brads of commerce do have a slightly thickened upper end, but it is so much smaller in transverse extent than the heads of common nails, that it is regarded to all intents and purposes as being headless, for at this point in the improved method any infrequent areas, at which the upper surface of the carpet is temporarily held down by the nails, are lifted or plucked upwardly by means of pincers, tweezers or the like (not shown), so that these areas resume their original status in the plane of the uppermost surface of the major body portion of the said carpet, as also indicated in the drawings. The obvious result is that by this method no resulting depressions remain in which dirt and dust accumulates as is customarily the case, and from which such dirt and dust usually have to be removed by a stiff brush.

Referring to Fig. 2, the difference here represented from that structure shown in Figs. 1 and 3 is merely in the fact that a base flooring I2 of cement, concrete, or the like, when being originally laid is provided with a marginal strip of wood I3, or equivalent nail-receivable material, to which the headless nails II are driven to secure the wooden strips I0 and adjacent edge portions of the carpet to such flooring, as otherwise it would be difilcult to drive the usual slender nails into such relatively solid and unyielding substance as cement or concrete. Otherwise, the same numerals are used in Fig. 2 as are used in Figs. 1 and 3.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to protect by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. The method of laying carpet, which consists in first laying a sheet of lining upon a floor said strip, the underturned edge portion ofthe.

carpet and into the flooring, and then plucking the carpet free from said nail and'returning it to the plane of the body portion of the carpet.

2. The method of laying carpet, which consists I in first laying a sheet of lining upon a floor with" its edge portion spaced away from a wall that bounds the floor, securing the edge portion ofthe carpet to the upper surface of a narrow reinforcing strip, inverting the strip-with-the attached carpet surrounding that edge of the strip file-of this patent:

and lower surfaces when inverted, driving a heagiless nail through the upwardly directed car-pet layer, the strip, the under-turned carpet layeLr, andinto the floor, and then plucking the carpet free from said nail and returning it to the plane:

of the body portion of the carpet.

THOMAS B. VAN BELLE.

v REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the .3 UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Date 1;65 3,501 Dec. 20, 1927 2,051,191 Aug. 18,1936 2,238,946 Apr:22, 194? 2,260,908 Johnson Oct. 28,- 1941 2,377,997 Detrick June 12,1945

7 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date- 110,463 Australiai nfl May-9, 1940 

